The aim of this study was to describe the common presentation, frequency, and complications of Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP) in patients <18 years who were followed up at King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah over the last 12 years. We performed a retrospective chart review of the medical records of all patients diagnosed as HSP. During this period, only 29 cases were reported (15 males, 14 females), with the mean age at the diagnosis 7.5 years. 82% percent of the patients had joint involvement in the form of arthritis or arthralgia; 17.2% had no joint involvement. Abdominal manifestations were reported in 72.4% of the patients, while renal involvement was documented in 24.1% of the cases; two patients had scrotal involvement. Four patients (13.7%) had a recurrence within four months of HSP diagnosis. However, all patients had full recovery within a month. More research is warranted to study the prevalence, clinical manifestations, preceding factors, and complications of HSP in a Saudi-based cohort.

Celiac disease is a permanent intolerance to gluten proteins of wheat, rye, barley, and oats in genetically susceptible individuals. The clinical picture is characterized by inflammation and damage of the small intestinal mucosa and malabsorption of essential nutrients. Therapeutically, a lifelong strict gluten-free diet is necessary. The diagnosis of celiac disease is complex and includes symptomatology, serology, small intestinal histology, and genetic status. Serological testing plays a central role within the diagnostic procedure and is based on the measurement of disease-specific antibodies against gluten proteins (antigen) and tissue transglutaminase (autoantigen). Immunofluorescence detection and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays are currently most often applied for antibody testing. However, these tests are expensive and time-consuming. Therefore, simple and rapid alternative methods have been developed during the last years, and electro-chemical immunosensors seem to be the most promising analytical tools. The architecture of these sensors may comprise the following elements: working and reference electrodes, covalent or noncovalent binding of the antigen to the surface of the working electrode by means of a functional monolayer, and blocking of unreacted binding sites. The analytical procedure is initiated by adding the analyte (serum antibodies) and an analyte-specific second antibody, which is usually labeled with an enzyme. The special reaction of the enzyme with an appropriate substrate results in a product that initiates a current that can be measured by different electrical methods. A number of different electrochemical immunosensors variable in different electrodes, binding systems, secondary antibodies, and current measurements have been developed. Most of them have been tested with real human serum samples of celiac patients and healthy individuals, and some of them reached disease sensitivity and specificity comparable with traditional analytical systems. Thus, electrochemical immunosensors can be promising alternatives to existing diagnostic tests in future. They are simple, reliable, robust, user-friendly, and cost-effective tools with short operation times.

Rapid identification and characterization of Listeria monocytogenes are required for the food industry, epidemiological studies, and disease prevention and control. However, typing procedures are labor-intensive and time-consuming, and they require technical expertise, a panel of sera and reference culture strains or sophisticated and expensive equipment. To improve upon traditional diagnostic methods for L. monocytogenes we developed and evaluated an efficient procedure for the specific identification of L. monocytogenes and the major pathogenic serotypes of the species based on loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP). Four individual reactions were designed using primers targeting any L. monocytogenes serotypes (LAMP-AS) and the 1/2a (LAMP-1/2a), 1/2b (LAMP-1/2b), and 4b (LAMP-4b) serotypes. The procedure distinguished L. monocytogenes from closely genetically related species and the targeted serotypes. Cross-reactivity with a few rare serotypes isolated from food or clinical samples did not impair the usefulness of the procedure. Thus, our approach constitutes a fast, easy and low-cost alternative for L. monocytogenes diagnosis and serotyping and may be useful for surveillance and epidemiological investigation programs.

Cossart, P. (2011) Illuminating the Landscape of Host-Pathogen Interactions with the Bacterium Listeria monocytogenes. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 108, 19484-19491.http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1112371108

A male named Anwer Jamal, age 45 years, married, visited Clinic Rafaheaam Dawakhana Ajmali on March 29, 2013, with history of glomerulonephritis, inherited renal diseases, hypertension and previously hooked on voltaren 50 (Diclofenic Sodium, 50 mg) and was not on dialysis. Different diagnostic parameters showed the patient was suffering from acute renal failure according to the RIFLE criteria. AKI is life threatening when kidneys suddenly is unable to filter waste products from blood. The patient was treated and managed with herbal medicines according to Unani system of medicine. Reversal of the parameter such as serum creatinine from 7.90 mg/dl (6.58 fold high) to 0.81mg/dl within two weeks clearly shows the remarkable recovery in a short period of time. During this period the other related parameters e.g. blood urea nitrogen (BUN), serum albumin, albuminuria, blood pressure were also normalized whereas clinical sign and symptom exhibited improvement.

Granular cell tumor (GCT) is a rare neoplasm that can occur in any part of the body, but mostly they are located intraorally. Its histogenetic origin remains controversial, but it probably arises from Schwann cells and is generally benign. The tumor is typically asymptomatic and appears as a nodule, with a relatively high predilection for the tongue. This article reports a case of a 72-year-old woman treated at the Center of Oral Diagnosis of the Fundação Hermínio Ometto Dental School. The patient presented with an asymptomatic nodule in the dorsal surface of the tongue for approximately 4 months. The patient was submitted to an excisional biopsy and histopatological examination revealed polyhedral cells with granular aspect. The immunohistochemical staining for S-100 presented strong reactivity, confirming the diagnosis of GCT. Finally, we made a concise discussion about the pathogenesis and fundamental clinico-pathological aspects of GCT making the differential diagnosis.

Granular cell tumor (GCT) is a rare neoplasm that can occur in any part of the body, but mostly they are located intraorally. Its histogenetic origin remains controversial, but it probably arises from Schwann cells and is generally benign. The tumor is typically asymptomatic and appears as a nodule, with a relatively high predilection for the tongue. This article reports a case of a 72-year-old woman treated at the Center of Oral Diagnosis of the Fundação Hermínio Ometto Dental School. The patient presented with an asymptomatic nodule in the dorsal surface of the tongue for approximately 4 months. The patient was submitted to an excisional biopsy and histopatological examination revealed polyhedral cells with granular aspect. The immunohistochemical staining for S-100 presented strong reactivity, confirming the diagnosis of GCT. Finally, we made a concise discussion about the pathogenesis and fundamental clinico-pathological aspects of GCT making the differential diagnosis.

Objective: To review presentation, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of male breast cancer. Method: A systematic review of the English language literature between 1990 and 2013 was conducted to identify studies relevant to the objective. Searches were carried out on the database PubMed, by using the title term “male breast cancer”. Results: The majority of male patients present with a painless, firm, subareolar lump. Experience of male breast imaging is good but limited. However, there is no definitive therapeutic algorithm. Men are often treated with mastectomy instead of breast conserving surgery and mostly tamoxifen is used as an adjuvant therapy. The most important prognostic factors are tumor size and lymph node status in the armpit. Conclusion: More increased awareness and further research are needed to improve the diagnosis and treatment of this disease.

Taylor, K., Ames, V. and Wallis, M. (2013) The Diagnostic Value of Clinical Examination and Imaging Used as Part of an Age-Related Protocol When Diagnosing Male Breast Disease: An Audit of 1141 Cases from a Single Centre. Breast, 22, 268-272.http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.breast.2013.03.004

Gupta, R.K., Naran, S., Dowle, C.S. and Simpson, J.S. (1991) The Diagnostic Impact of Needle Aspiration Cytology of the Breast on Clinical Decision Making with an Emphasis on the Aspiration Cytodiagnosis of the Male Breast. Diagnostic Cytopathology, 7, 637-639.http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/dc.2840070620